Walvisbaai Transportation

Just a word of warning if you decide to fly out of Walvis Bay to connect with an international flight.

The airport is right on the edge of the Namib desert, and when the wind gets up, the visibility can be so compromised that flights out of Walvis are delayed or even postponed until the next day (see photo).

It doesn't happen very regularly, but it happens often enough to make it advisable to err on the side of caution and fly out of Walvis the day before you connect to your international flight.

Namibia is a long way from anywhere, and doesn't receive mass tourism, so it isn't necessarily the easiest or cheapest place to get to. Nevertheless, some options are quicker and easier than others, so here are a few ideas on how to secure a relatively reasonable and flexible fare.

From Europe, the only direct flights are from Frankfurt on Air Namibia - not surprising as Namibia was a former German colony (South West Africa) and Germans still comprise the largest single group of tourists. However, because of the lack of competition on this route, this can be an expensive option (but check it anyway when you start your research in case there is a special on offer).

Many tourists find that the easiest way is to fly in via Johannesburg, as this is a heavily trafficked route on which there is considerable competition between carriers. From Jo'burg, it's only a two hour flight to Windhoek - the main port of entry for most tourists to Namibia. Air Namibia, SA Express (the regional service operated by SAA) and the low cost carrier Kulula (in partnership with British Airways) fly the Jo'burg - Windhoek route, so there are several flights a day and some welcome competition to drive down the price.

It's also possible to fly in to Windhoek via Cape Town - which also takes about two hours - although there are fewer flights (and thus, less flexibility) on this route.

One other option that you may not have considered is to fly into Walvis Bay, which is 30 minutes drive south of Swakopmund on the Atlantic coast. There are a couple of flights from Johannesburg a day operated by Air Namibia and SA Express, and these carriers also operate services from Cape Town. Whilst generally more expensive than the Jo'burg-Windhoek flight (as there isn't so much competition, and none of the low cost carriers service this route), it's not extortionately expensive, and you may find that there are special deals on offer. If you are hiring a car, then it might well be worth investigating the possibility of flying into Windhoek and out of Walvis (or vice versa) to save yourself the extra driving time and additional hire car and fuel costs involved in driving a circular route.

Some nationalities require a tourist visa for Namibia, but there is a long list of exceptions (see the website below) including tourists from the UK, USA and Germany and neighbouring states, who do not require a visa.

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Walvis Bay just begs to be experienced by boat .... you can see the desert and the ocean better, along with the harbour and animals - such as dolphins, seals and birds. Some serious fun! You can even rent a kayak and explore the lagoon. The other options are a dolphin cruise, or a fishing expedition.

Like the rest of Namibia, tha Walvis Bay area is best reached and explored with your own car, or at least with the tour bus or whatever. Highly recommended is the beautiful stretch of road between Walvis Bay and Swakopmund, the Trans-Kalahari Highway. It is a road between desert and ocean - an attraction in itself.

To get here from the Namib-Naukluft Sesriem/Solitaire area the C14 is usually the route of choice... it is one of the most desolate stretches of road. And the B2 or C28 (via Swakopmund) to Windhoek

The majority of roads in Namibia are dust roads as you see on this picture. Take good caution when travelling on these roads, particulary at night. Ensure you have the right tyre pressure and do not drive to fast!

The coast can be reached by tarred road from Windhoek. Unfortunatley the country only has got four tarred roads, one connecting the South with the North, the road crossing from the coast via Windhoek to the Botswana border and the road to Luederitz.

Walvisbaai/Walvis Bay has a small airport, located in the desert east of the city. There are flights to Windhoek (both airports) and to Cape Town, South Africa, making it easy to get to Walvis Bay and neighbouring Swakopmund.

You can catch direct flights from CT to Walvisbay on a daily basis. Flights are rather steep, but it is worth it.